Lobster & Bacon Macaroni and Cheese

As I mentioned in my previous post, my birthday was last Friday and there truly is nothing I enjoy more than cooking a nice meal with my husband. Don’t get me wrong, I love to go out to eat but sometimes it’s nice to just enjoy some good food, wine and champagne in the comfort of your own home. Read my last post to get all the info about where I got my inspiration for this meal from and be sure to visit his site to get even more ideas including the fried mac n’ cheese bites he posted over the weekend! My parents got me Martha Stewart’s Cooking School for Christmas so I just went with the standard Macaroni and Cheese recipe from there. I decided I wanted to add the lobster and my husband asked if we could throw some bacon in there too, it was incredible! We also visited Zillycakes Cupcakery and picked up some vegan and specialty cupcakes in the afternoon that were to die for! Before I forget, in an effort to make things as user friendly I have added sub-categories to the menu tab at the top of the page. On a regular computer, just hover your mouse over to menu tab to see all of the sub-categores and it should just appear on mobile devices and tablets. My hope is that this will make things much easier so you can always find exactly what you need. I have also built a large light box for my office so that I can get much better pictures of the finished recipes since I typically am cooking at night time! This recipe makes enough for four small crocks but is easily multiplied for bigger crowds!Start off by getting yourself prepped. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Butter four 6 ounce oven-safe crocks or ramekins with unsalted butter and set on a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Cook 4 ounces of elbow macaroni 2-3 minutes less than the packages time for al dente. Pan fry your bacon (I used 4 slices thick cut bacon), then transfer to a paper towel-line plate and once cool chop it into bite sized pieces. Toss 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs with 2 tbsp melted unsalted butter. You’ll need to prepare one 2 lb live lobster by following the steps in this post. And you’ll also want to grate 1 ounce italian fontina cheese, 1.5 ounces gruyere cheese, 3 ounces extra sharp white cheddar cheese and 1 ounce parmesan-reggiano cheese.

Melt 2 tbsp unsalted butter in a 3-quart pot over medium heat, then sweat 2 tbsp finely diced yellow onion until translucent (1), about 5 minutes. Whisk in 2 tbsp all-purpose flour and cook stirring with a wooden spoon (2) until bubbling but now browning, about 45 seconds. Add 1 1/2 cups whole milk and whisk to combine. Bring to a simmer, stirring with a wooden spoon (scrap across the bottom about around the edge of pot to prevent scorching) until thicken, about 4 minutes. This is a béchamel and you’ll know it’s thick enough when you coat the back of your spoon with it, run your finger through it and it holds its line (3). Mix all of the cheeses together and set aside about 1/2 cup then pour the rest into the béchamel (4). Stir until the cheese is completely melted and the sauce is smooth, then remove from heat and stir in a pinch of salt and pepper, 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper, and 1/8 tsp freshly ground nutmeg (5). Fold in the elbow macaroni, the lobster and the bacon… evenly divide among the crocks (6).

Top each crock with 2 tbsp of the remaining cheese and the same with the breadcrumbs and bake until bubbling and the cheese is golden brown, 25-30 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Butter four 6 ounce oven-safe crocks or ramekins with butter and set on a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Cook macaroni 2-3 minutes less than the packages time for al dente. Pan fry your bacon, then transfer to a paper towel-line plate and once cool chop it into bite sized pieces. Toss panko bread crumbs with 2 tbsp melted unsalted butter. Reserve the meat from your prepared lobster and mix off your cheeses together.

Melt 2 tbsp unsalted butter in a 3-quart pot over medium heat, then sweat onion until translucent , about 5 minutes. Whisk in 2 flour and cook stirring with a wooden spoon until bubbling but now browning, about 45 seconds. Add milk and whisk to combine. Bring to a simmer, stirring with a wooden spoon (scrap across the bottom about around the edge of pot to prevent scorching) until thickened, about 4 minutes. This is a béchamel and you’ll know it’s thick enough when you coat the back of your spoon with it, run your finger through it and it holds its line. Set aside about 1/2 cup of your mixed cheeses then pour the rest into the béchamel. Stir until the cheese is completely melted and the sauce is smooth, then remove from heat and stir in a pinch of salt and pepper, cayenne pepper, and nutmeg. Fold in the elbow macaroni, the lobster and the bacon… evenly divide among the crocks.

Top each crock with 2 tbsp of the remaining cheese and the same with the breadcrumbs and bake until bubbling and the cheese is golden brown, 25-30 minutes.